Sweden's Gislaved buys German compounder GFD

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (July 3)—Swedish rubber compounder and processor Gislaved Gummi A.B. has acquired German rubber compounder GFD Technology GmbH, boosting its annual sales 60 percent to more than $80 million. Gislaved may expand further through acquisition, according to Ola Rollen, president and CEO of Hexagon A.B., the group that owns Gislaved's three rubber operations. Hexagon—whose three business areas are engineering, metrology and automation—aims to become No. 1 or No. 2 in its strategic segments, he said. In compounding, Gislaved's purchase of 5-year-old GFD has given it a strong position in northern Europe. But "we need to strengthen our position further in the market in Italy, France and Spain," Rollen said, adding that Hexagon may add another compounder to its business in future.